Heat dissipation device and method of manufacturing same

ABSTRACT

A heat dissipation device includes a mounting bracket and a thermal module. The mounting bracket has at least one retaining hole and a mounting section, and the thermal module includes a plurality of radiating fins, to which the mounting bracket is connected. On the radiating fins, at least one engaging zone is provided for correspondingly engaging with the mounting bracket, and at least one locking portion is formed for correspondingly engaging with the retaining hole. With the above structural design, the mounting bracket can be more firmly and stably connected to the thermal module and be more accurately located on the radiating fins without the need of welding, so that the manufacturing cost for welding is saved. A method of manufacturing the heat dissipation device is also disclosed.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a heat dissipation device, and moreparticularly to a heat dissipation device, of which a mounting bracketand a thermal module can be firmly connected to each other without theneed of welding and the mounting bracket can be more accurately locatedon the thermal module. The present invention also relates to a method ofmanufacturing the above-described heat dissipation device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Thanks to the constant progress in the technological fields, electronicelements, such as the central processing unit in a computer, now havefaster and faster operating speed. As a result, heat dissipation deviceshave become one of indispensable devices for dissipating the heatproduced by the electronic elements operating at high speed. Meanwhile,it has also become very important as how to conveniently but reliablymount the heat dissipation devices on the electronic elements at reducedcost.

Please refer to FIGS. 1A and 1B. Generally, there are two ways forfixedly mounting a currently commercially available heat dissipationdevice 1 to an electronic element via a mounting bracket. In a first oneof the two ways, the mounting bracket 11 is directly welded to one sideof the heat dissipation device 1, as shown in FIG. 1A, so that themounting bracket 11 and the heat dissipation device 1 are connected toeach other. In the other way, at least one engaging zone 101 is firstformed on the radiating fins 10 of the heat dissipation device 1, asshown in FIG. 1B, and the mounting bracket 11 is positioned in theengaging zone 101. Thereafter, weld the mounting bracket 11 to theengaging zone 101, so that the mounting bracket 11 is not easilyseparated from the heat dissipation device 1.

Both of the above-mentioned ways require welding to firmly connect themounting bracket 11 to the heat dissipation device, and then, the heatdissipation device 1 is secured to the electronic element via themounting bracket 11. It is possibly the mounting bracket 11 is notsecurely welded to a correct position on the heat dissipation device 1,and the welding is possibly to cause process hazard and other problemsrelated to environmental protection. Moreover, the costs for materialsand parts needed in welding also result in increased manufacturing costof the heat dissipation device 1.

In brief, the prior art heat dissipation devices have the followingdisadvantages: (1) the mounting bracket is subject to incorrect locationon the heat dissipation device; (2) the connection of the mountingbracket to the heat dissipation device is not sufficiently secured; and(3) an increased manufacturing cost is required.

It is therefore tried by the inventor to develop an improved heatdissipation device and a method of manufacturing same, so as to overcomethe disadvantages in the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A primary object of the present invention is to provide a heatdissipation device, of which a mounting bracket and a thermal module canbe firmly connected to each other, and the mounting bracket can be moreaccurately located on the thermal module.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a heat dissipationdevice, of which a mounting bracket and a thermal module can be firmlyconnected to each other without the need of welding, so that themanufacturing cost of the heat dissipation device can be lowered.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a method ofmanufacturing a heat dissipation device, of which a mounting bracket anda thermal module can be firmly connected to each other, and the mountingbracket can be more accurately located on the thermal module.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide a methodof manufacturing a heat dissipation device, of which a mounting bracketand a thermal module can be firmly connected to each other without theneed of welding, so that the manufacturing cost of the heat dissipationdevice can be lowered.

To achieve the above and other objects, the heat dissipation deviceaccording to the present invention includes a mounting bracket and athermal module. The mounting bracket has at least one retaining hole anda mounting section, and the thermal module includes a plurality ofradiating fins, to which the mounting bracket is connected. On theradiating fins, at least one engaging zone is provided for engaging withthe mounting bracket, and at least one locking portion is formed forcorrespondingly engaging with the retaining hole.

To achieve the above and other objects, the heat dissipation devicemanufacturing method according to the present invention includes thefollowing steps:

Providing a mounting bracket having at least one retaining hole and amounting section;

Providing a thermal module including a plurality of radiating fins forengaging with the mounting bracket; on the radiating fins, at least oneengaging zone being provided for correspondingly engaging with themounting bracket, and at least one locking portion being formed forcorrespondingly engaging with the retaining hole on the mountingbracket; and

Positioning the mounting bracket in the engaging zone, and applying anamount of pressure on the at least one locking portion, so that thelocking portion is brought to extend into and become held in theretaining hole on the mounting bracket, bringing the mounting bracketand the thermal module to connect to each other.

With the heat dissipation device and the method of manufacturing sameaccording to the present invention, the locking portions on theradiating fins are mechanically processed to extend into and engage withthe retaining hole without the need of welding, so that the mountingbracket and the thermal module are more firmly connected to each otherwhile the mounting bracket is more accurately located on the thermalmodule, and the cost for welding is saved to reduce the overallmanufacturing cost.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The structure and the technical means adopted by the present inventionto achieve the above and other objects can be best understood byreferring to the following detailed description of the preferredembodiments and the accompanying drawings, wherein

FIG. 1A is an assembled perspective view of a first conventional heatdissipation device;

FIG. 1B is an assembled perspective view of a second conventional heatdissipation device;

FIG. 2A is an exploded perspective view of a heat dissipation deviceaccording to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2B is an assembled view of FIG. 2A;

FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 2B;

FIG. 3B is an enlarged view of the circled area of FIG. 3A;

FIG. 3C is another enlarged view similar to FIG. 3B but with a pluralityof locking portions on a thermal module engaged with a retaining hole ona mounting bracket;

FIG. 4A is an exploded perspective view of a heat dissipation deviceaccording to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4B is an assembled view of FIG. 4A;

FIG. 5A is a perspective view of a mounting bracket for a heatdissipation device according to a third embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5B is an exploded perspective view of the heat dissipation deviceaccording to the third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5C is an assembled view of FIG. 5B;

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of a heat dissipation deviceaccording to a fourth embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the steps included in a method accordingto the present invention for manufacturing a heat dissipation device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention will now be described with some preferredembodiments thereof and with reference to the accompanying drawings. Forthe purpose of easy to understand, elements that are the same in thepreferred embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals.

Please refer to FIGS. 2A and 2B that are exploded and assembledperspective views, respectively, of a heat dissipation device 2according to a first embodiment of the present invention. As shown, theheat dissipation device 2 includes a mounting bracket 20 and a thermalmodule 21. The mounting bracket 20 has at least one retaining hole 201and a mounting section 202. The heat dissipation device 2 is connectedat the mounting section 202 to an electronic element (not shown).

The thermal module 21 includes a plurality of radiating fins 211, towhich the mounting bracket 20 is connected. On the radiating fins 211,at least one engaging zone 2111 is provided for correspondingly engagingwith the mounting bracket 20. The radiating fins 211 respectively haveat least one locking portion 2112 formed thereon for correspondinglyengaging with the retaining hole 201 on the mounting bracket 20.

The locking portions 2112 can be brought to engage with the retaininghole 201 on the mounting bracket 20 by way of mechanical processing. Inthe illustrated first embodiment, the locking portions 2112 are causedto engage with the retaining hole 201 by way of stamping without beinglimited thereto.

FIG. 3A is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 2B, andFIGS. 3B and 3C are enlarged views corresponding to the circled area inFIG. 3A. Please refer to FIGS. 3A, 3B and 3C along with FIGS. 2A and 2B.As shown, with the structural design of the above-described heatdissipation device 2, the mounting bracket 20 can be firmly and stablyconnected to the thermal module 21 when the locking portions 2112 on theradiating fins 211 are brought to extend into and held in the retaininghole 201, and the mounting bracket 20 can be located in place on thethermal module 21 with high accuracy. In addition, it is able to savethe cost for welding the mounting bracket 20 to the thermal module 21.

As can be seen in FIG. 2A, the mounting bracket 20 further has at leastone stopper portion 203 for inserting in between two adjacent radiatingfins 211. When the mounting bracket 20 is inserted into the engagingzone 2111 on the thermal module 21 from an open lateral side of theradiating fins 211, the stopper portion 203 of the mounting bracket 20is received in between two adjacent radiating fins 211, enabling themounting bracket 20 to more securely connect to the thermal module 21.

FIGS. 4A and 4B are exploded and assembled perspective views,respectively, of a heat dissipation device according to a secondembodiment of the present invention. As shown, the second embodiment isgenerally structurally similar to the first embodiment, except that themounting bracket 20 in the second embodiment is a flat member withoutthe stopper portion 203, and can therefore be moved into the engagingzone 2111 from an end surface of the assembled radiating fins 211 toconnect to the thermal module 21. Similarly, in the second embodiment,the locking portions 2112 can be caused to extend into and held in theretaining hole 201 for the mounting bracket 20 to be highly accuratelylocated in place on the thermal module 21.

FIG. 5A is a perspective view of a mounting bracket 20 for a heatdissipation device according to a third embodiment of the presentinvention, and FIGS. 5B and 5C are exploded and assembled perspectiveviews, respectively, of the heat dissipation device in the thirdembodiment. As shown, the third embodiment is generally structurallysimilar to the first embodiment, except that the mounting bracket 20 inthe third embodiment is provided with a plurality of retaining holes201, which can be differently sized and arrayed on the mounting bracket20 according to the widths, sizes, and number of the locking portions2112 provided on the radiating fins 211. Again, with the lockingportions 2112 being engaged with the retaining holes 201, the mountingbracket 20 can be securely connected to the thermal module 21, Further,it is not necessary for all the locking portions 2112 to engage with theretaining holes 201. A user may cause only some of the locking portions2112 to engage with the retaining holes 201 according to actual need.

Please refer to FIG. 6 that is an exploded perspective view of a heatdissipation device 2 according to a fourth embodiment of the presentinvention. As shown, the fourth embodiment is generally structurallysimilar to the first embodiment, except that, in the third embodiment,the locking portions 2112 are not sequentially provided on all theradiating fins 211 but are arranged at predetermined intervals. Withthis design, it is also possible to securely connect the mountingbracket 20 to the thermal module 21.

The present invention also provides a method of manufacturing heatdissipation device. Please refer to FIG. 7, which is a flowchart showingsteps S1, S2, and S3 included in the heat dissipation devicemanufacturing method of the present invention.

In the step S1, a mounting bracket having at least one retaining holeand a mounting section is provided.

More specifically, a mounting bracket 20 having at least one retaininghole 201 and a mounting section 202 is provided.

In the step S2, a thermal module including a plurality of radiating finsfor engaging with the mounting bracket is provided. On the radiatingfins, at least one engaging zone is provided for correspondinglyengaging with the mounting bracket, and at least one locking portion isformed for correspondingly engaging with the at least one retaining holeon the mounting bracket.

More specifically, a thermal module 21 including a plurality ofradiating fins 211 for engaging with the mounting bracket 20 is furtherprovided. On the radiating fins 211, at least one locking portion 2112is provided for correspondingly inserting into the at least oneretaining hole 201 on the mounting bracket 20.

In the step S3, the mounting bracket is positioned in the engaging zone,and an amount of pressure is applied to the at least one locking portion2112 for the same to extend into the at least one retaining hole and beheld therein, so that the mounting bracket and the thermal module areconnected to each other.

More specifically, the mounting bracket 20 is positioned in the engagingzone 2111, and an amount of pressure is applied to the at least onelocking portion 2112 for the same to extend into the at least oneretaining hole 201 and be held therein, so that the mounting bracket 20and the thermal module 21 are connected to each other.

In the step S3, the at least one locking portion 2112 are brought toengage with the at least one retaining hole 201 by way of mechanicalprocessing. In the illustrated embodiment, the mechanical processingincludes but not limited to stamping.

With the above described heat dissipation device manufacturing method,the at least one locking portion 2112 on the radiating fins 211 isstamped to thereby extend into and become engaged with the at least oneretaining hole 201 on the mounting bracket 20. In this manner, themounting bracket 20 can be more accurately located on the radiating fins211 and more securely connected to the thermal module 21. In addition,it is able to save the cost needed for welding the mounting bracket 20to the thermal module 21.

In brief, the present invention is superior to the prior art due to thefollowing advantages: (1) the mounting bracket is accurately located onthe radiating fins; (2) the mounting bracket is securely connected tothe thermal module; and (3) the manufacturing cost is reduced.

The present invention has been described with some preferred embodimentsthereof and it is understood that many changes and modifications in thedescribed embodiments can be carried out without departing from thescope and the spirit of the invention that is intended to be limitedonly by the appended claims.

1-6. (canceled)
 7. A method of manufacturing heat dissipation device,comprising the following steps: providing a mounting bracket having atleast one retaining hole and a mounting section; providing a thermalmodule including a plurality of radiating fins for engaging with themounting bracket; on the radiating fins, at least one engaging zonebeing provided for correspondingly engaging with the mounting bracket,and at least one locking portion being formed for correspondinglyengaging with the at least one retaining hole on the mounting bracket;and positioning the mounting bracket in the engaging zone, and applyingan amount of pressure on the at least one locking portion, so that thelocking portion is brought to extend into and become held in theretaining hole on the mounting bracket, bringing the mounting bracketand the thermal module to connect to each other.
 8. The heat dissipationdevice manufacturing method as claimed in claim 7, wherein the lockingportion is brought to engage with the retaining hole on the mountingbracket by way of mechanical processing.
 9. The heat dissipation devicemanufacturing method as claimed in claim 8, wherein the mechanicalprocessing is stamping.
 10. The heat dissipation device manufacturingmethod as claimed in claim 7, wherein the mounting bracket is insertedinto the engaging zone on the thermal module from an open lateral sideof the radiating fins.
 11. The heat dissipation device manufacturingmethod as claimed in claim 10, wherein the mounting bracket further hasat least one stopper portion adapted to insert in between two adjacentradiating fins.
 12. The heat dissipation device manufacturing method asclaimed in claim 7, wherein the mounting bracket is inserted into theengaging zone on the thermal module from an end surface of the assembledradiating fins.